Cynthia Van Ness: Buffalo should clear snow from sidewalks

When I moved to Buffalo 20 years ago, I was shocked to discover that the city does not plow sidewalks. How could that be, in a place that gets so much snow?

I grew up in Rochester, where sidewalks were and still are plowed at public expense. Rochester has 37 square miles; Buffalo has 42. Its population is 210,855; ours is 261,025. Rochester’s economy has declined as much as Buffalo’s, yet its government continues to provide sidewalk plowing while ours pleads poverty.

In Buffalo, property owners are required to clear sidewalks in front of their homes and businesses. We should all get out and shovel and show the world that we truly are the City of Good Neighbors. If we don’t, we are anti-social lazybones who deserve their annual scolding from The Buffalo News. This popular sentiment reflects idealism about who we wish we were more than realism about consistently cleared sidewalks. Spoiler alert: This law is a failure.

When I walk my 1.5-mile route to work, let us say for the sake of argument that I pass 500 houses and businesses. For me to have a fully cleared path, all 500 must shovel, sweep, snowblow and/or salt to the same standard after each and every snowfall. What level of compliance constitutes success? Eighty percent? Meaning that for every five addresses, four are shoveled, so I have to detour into the street for only 20 percent of my route? How about frequency of shoveling? If owners shovel their sidewalk after four out of five fresh snowfalls, is that satisfactory?

Let’s say that Buffalo’s 15 percent vacancy rate, the highest in the state, is reflected in my route and 15 percent of the addresses I pass are vacant or demolished. Who shall we ticket about impassable sidewalks in front of abandoned lots and buildings? Who is responsible for clearing the sidewalks fronting city-owned parking lots? These are purposely situated near commercial corridors that depend on foot traffic. The city, which is now our single-largest land owner, does not obey its own shoveling laws.

Likewise, if I use a bridge over a state highway – Elmwood Avenue bridge over the Scajaquada, I’m looking at you! – its sidewalks will most certainly be dangerously impassable. The state of New York doesn’t obey Buffalo’s laws, either.

If owner shoveling is such a good way to clear snow, why don’t we sell our street plows, lay off snowplow drivers to save on taxes and require owners to shovel out streets, too?

We do not burden individuals in this way because one absent household failing to clear the street would impede all drivers and all emergency vehicles. We plow our streets at public expense to provide safe, consistent and equitable access for all.

Pedestrians deserve the same safe, consistent and equitable access to public rights of way as vehicles. Automobiles spend about 90 percent of the time parked, meaning that 90 percent of the time, we are pedestrians instead of drivers. City budget priorities should reflect this reality.